Alberta’s population grew 1.6 per cent between July 2018 and July 2019, and the system faces annual cost pressures of about 2.5 per cent.

“We have to do things differently in order to provide care to Albertans.”

AHS said it has worked over the past decade to find efficiencies across all areas of the organization, and was tied for the lowest administrative spending in Canada, at 3.3 per cent of total expenses, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

“More than half of AHS has gone through the operational best practice process, resulting in savings of $175 million by the end of the 2018-19 fiscal year.

“Additional efficiencies across the entire organization will be informed by the Ernst & Young review of AHS. This is all designed to maximize efficiency and provide sustainable quality care,” AHS said.